Neck injuries can occur during motor vehicle accidents, other traumatic events or sports. Symptoms of these injuries include neck stiffness, shoulder or arm pain, headache, facial pain and dizziness. Pain from a motor vehicle injury may be caused by tears in muscles or injuries to the joints between vertebrae. Other causes of pain are ligament rupture or damage to a disc. Conservative treatment of these injuries includes pain medication, bed rest, reduction of physical activity and physical therapy.
The most worrisome causes of neck pain rarely cause severe pain, and common problems like slipped discs are usually much less serious than people fear. Sharp and stabbing pains are usually false alarms. Only about 1% of neck pain is ominous, and even then it’s often still treatable. Most of the 1% are due to cancer, autoimmune disease, or spinal cord damage.

One of the most common concerns about the neck that is not especially worrisome: signs of “wear and tear” on the cervical spine, arthritis, and degenerative disc disease, as revealed by x-ray, CT scans, and MRI. Many people who have clear signs of arthritic degeneration in their spines will never have any symptoms, or only minor, and/or not for a long time.10 For instance, about 50% of fortysomethings have clinically silent disk bulges, and even at age 20 there’s a surprising amount of spinal arthritis. The seriousness of these signs is routinely overestimated by patients and healthcare professionals alike.11

Determining a treatment strategy depends mainly on identifying the location and cause of the irritated nerve root. Although neck pain can be quite debilitating and painful, nonsurgical management can alleviate many symptoms. The doctor may prescribe medications to reduce the pain or inflammation and muscle relaxants to allow time for healing to occur. Reducing physical activities or wearing a cervical collar may help provide support for the spine, reduce mobility and decrease pain and irritation. Trigger point injection, including corticosteroids, can temporarily relieve pain. Occasionally, epidural steroids may be recommended. Conservative treatment options may continue for up to six or eight weeks.

Finding a good, or even great, chiropractor doesn’t happen just by chance. It’s like anything else today–there are online options for finding user-generated reviews and recommendations to help you find the best chiropractor close to you. Add that to your network of family and friends, and peer-reviewed sites like PainDoctor.com, and you have the tools you need to make the best decision for you.

Our North Wales / Lansdale / Blue Bell PA Office is here to enhance your quality of life through chiropractic care, and we believe that chiropractic and a proper exercise program can improve your overall health. Chiropractors don't just making the pain disappear. Our team will place you on a plan to help your pain, but also help find the source of the problem, and also goals on how to get better. Dr. Allen Conrad has been a chiropractor for over since 2001, serving the North Wales and Lansdale PA area. His office specializes in spinal decompression therapy, massage therapy, and chiropractic care for many types of injuries. Dr. Conrad se ... View Profile

Don’t medically investigate neck pain until it’s met at least three criteria: (1) it’s been bothering you for more than about 6 weeks; (2) it’s severe and/or not improving, or actually getting worse; and (3) there’s at least one other “red flag” (age over 55 or under 20, painful to light tapping, fever/malaise/nausea, weight loss, nasty headache, severe stiffness, very distinctive pain, and numbness and/or tingling and/or weakness anywhere else). Note that signs of arthritis are not red flags.

Our office is not only about adjusting your spine. I am certified in treating a wide range of conditions and focus on muscles and soft tissue that may need to be lengthened or strengthened. I am certified in soft tissue techniques called Trigenics and Instrument Assisted Soft Tissue Mobilization (Scraping). We are getting better and faster results since implementing both techniques. I have extensive training with the Advanced Functional Neurology Institute. All of these trainings have allowed me to treat conditions such as Peripheral Neuropathy, bone on bone degenerative knees and rotator cuff conditions/Frozen Shoulder, among others.
Some chiropractors oppose vaccination and water fluoridation, which are common public health practices.[32] Within the chiropractic community there are significant disagreements about vaccination, one of the most cost-effective public health interventions available.[221] Most chiropractic writings on vaccination focus on its negative aspects,[27] claiming that it is hazardous, ineffective, and unnecessary.[28] Some chiropractors have embraced vaccination, but a significant portion of the profession rejects it, as original chiropractic philosophy traces diseases to causes in the spine and states that vaccines interfere with healing.[28] The extent to which anti-vaccination views perpetuate the current chiropractic profession is uncertain.[27] The American Chiropractic Association and the International Chiropractors Association support individual exemptions to compulsory vaccination laws, and a 1995 survey of U.S. chiropractors found that about a third believed there was no scientific proof that immunization prevents disease.[28] The Canadian Chiropractic Association supports vaccination;[27] a survey in Alberta in 2002 found that 25% of chiropractors advised patients for, and 27% against, vaccinating themselves or their children.[222]

Symptoms caused by spinal cord trouble are called “myelopathy.” And there are a lot of possible symptoms: it depends on which part of the spinal cord is affected. And many of them can have other causes. And it may worsen slowly and erratically over long periods. You can’t really confirm a myelopathy diagnosis without professional help, so please consult a doctor if you’re suspicious. BACK TO TEXT

Most people believe that chiropractors treat back pain. That is a true, but there is so much more that chiropractic care can achieve. Because chiropractors help to remove pressure from the nervous system, they can also influence many other conditions. It is common to hear chiropractic patients say that they came in for back pain and their headaches got better.

Chiropractors are not normally licensed to write medical prescriptions or perform major surgery in the United States,[62] (although New Mexico has become the first US state to allow "advanced practice" trained chiropractors to prescribe certain medications.[63][64]). In the US, their scope of practice varies by state, based on inconsistent views of chiropractic care: some states, such as Iowa, broadly allow treatment of "human ailments"; some, such as Delaware, use vague concepts such as "transition of nerve energy" to define scope of practice; others, such as New Jersey, specify a severely narrowed scope.[65] US states also differ over whether chiropractors may conduct laboratory tests or diagnostic procedures, dispense dietary supplements, or use other therapies such as homeopathy and acupuncture; in Oregon they can become certified to perform minor surgery and to deliver children via natural childbirth.[62] A 2003 survey of North American chiropractors found that a slight majority favored allowing them to write prescriptions for over-the-counter drugs.[38] A 2010 survey found that 72% of Swiss chiropractors considered their ability to prescribe nonprescription medication as an advantage for chiropractic treatment.[66]

Serious research to test chiropractic theories did not begin until the 1970s, and is continuing to be hampered by antiscientific and pseudoscientific ideas that sustained the profession in its long battle with organized medicine.[37] By the mid 1990s there was a growing scholarly interest in chiropractic, which helped efforts to improve service quality and establish clinical guidelines that recommended manual therapies for acute low back pain.[37] In recent decades chiropractic gained legitimacy and greater acceptance by medical physicians and health plans, and enjoyed a strong political base and sustained demand for services.[21] However, its future seemed uncertain: as the number of practitioners grew, evidence-based medicine insisted on treatments with demonstrated value, managed care restricted payment, and competition grew from massage therapists and other health professions.[21] The profession responded by marketing natural products and devices more aggressively, and by reaching deeper into alternative medicine and primary care.[21]

Vertebrobasilar artery stroke (VAS) is statistically associated with chiropractic services in persons under 45 years of age,[147] but it is similarly associated with general practitioner services, suggesting that these associations are likely explained by preexisting conditions.[146][148] Weak to moderately strong evidence supports causation (as opposed to statistical association) between cervical manipulative therapy (CMT) and VAS.[149] There is insufficient evidence to support a strong association or no association between cervical manipulation and stroke.[15] While the biomechanical evidence is not sufficient to support the statement that CMT causes cervical artery dissection (CD), clinical reports suggest that mechanical forces have a part in a substantial number of CDs and the majority of population controlled studies found an association between CMT and VAS in young people.[150] It is strongly recommended that practitioners consider the plausibility of CD as a symptom, and people can be informed of the association between CD and CMT before administrating manipulation of the cervical spine.[150] There is controversy regarding the degree of risk of stroke from cervical manipulation.[15] Many chiropractors state that, the association between chiropractic therapy and vertebral arterial dissection is not proven.[17] However, it has been suggested that the causality between chiropractic cervical manipulation beyond the normal range of motion and vascular accidents is probable[17] or definite.[16] There is very low evidence supporting a small association between internal carotid artery dissection and chiropractic neck manipulation.[151] The incidence of internal carotid artery dissection following cervical spine manipulation is unknown.[152] The literature infrequently reports helpful data to better understand the association between cervical manipulative therapy, cervical artery dissection and stroke.[153] The limited evidence is inconclusive that chiropractic spinal manipulation therapy is not a cause of intracranial hypotension.[154] Cervical intradural disc herniation is very rare following spinal manipulation therapy.[155]
Upon graduation, there may be a requirement to pass national, state, or provincial board examinations before being licensed to practice in a particular jurisdiction.[171][172] Depending on the location, continuing education may be required to renew these licenses.[173][174] Specialty training is available through part-time postgraduate education programs such as chiropractic orthopedics and sports chiropractic, and through full-time residency programs such as radiology or orthopedics.[175]
The most worrisome causes of neck pain rarely cause severe pain, and common problems like slipped discs are usually much less serious than people fear. Sharp and stabbing pains are usually false alarms. Only about 1% of neck pain is ominous, and even then it’s often still treatable. Most of the 1% are due to cancer, autoimmune disease, or spinal cord damage.
Qaseem, A., Wilt, T. J., McLean, R. M., & Forciea, M. A. (2017, April 4). Noninvasive treatments for acute, subacute, and chronic low back pain: A clinical practice guideline from the American College of Physicians. Annals of Internal Medicine, 166(7), 514–530. Retrieved from http://annals.org/aim/fullarticle/2603228/noninvasive-treatments-acute-subacute-chronic-low-back-pain-clinical-practice
^ Jump up to: a b Hurwitz EL, Carragee EJ, van der Velde G, Carroll LJ, Nordin M, Guzman J, Peloso PM, Holm LW, Côté P, Hogg-Johnson S, Cassidy JD, Haldeman S (2008). "Treatment of neck pain: noninvasive interventions: results of the Bone and Joint Decade 2000–2010 Task Force on Neck Pain and Its Associated Disorders". Spine. 33 (4 Suppl): S123–52. doi:10.1097/BRS.0b013e3181644b1d. PMID 18204386.
“First of all, make sure your chiropractor is teaching you along with treating you,” says Dr. Jake LaVere, LaVere Performance Labs and Chiropractic. You want to make sure you’re educated and proactive in your treatment plan, working alongside your chiropractor to find a solution that will work for you. This will help you from both a preventative standpoint, as well as identifying when you’re in pain and what to do about it.